The Correlation Between Personal Responsibility and College Success

The correlation between personal responsibility and college success Roland Miner GEN/200 November 30, 2012 Sara Martin The correlation between personal responsibility and college success Even though some may say there is no direct correlation between personal responsibility and college success, the relationship with how responsible you are and how that affects your college success becomes evident with higher Grade Point Averages and overall pride in your work. With these tools, high GPA, intrinsic motivation, and self-efficacy, you receive during your college years there is evidence of achieving greater success after graduation.Another vital tool that will be explored, that is not being taught but comes naturally to some students, is emotional intelligence or common sense. The relationship between how responsible you are and your college success is apparent in many ways. A good strategy is to follow the syllabus and set up a game plan or schedule. Following an agenda will help you sp read out your work load over the week, it will show that you are on the right track and is a great indicator of how responsible you are.One of the worst traits that many people possess is procrastination. According to â€Å"California Polytechnic State University, Cal Poly Academic Skill Center† (n. d. ) â€Å"The procrastinator is often remarkably optimistic about his ability to complete a task on a tight deadline; this is usually accompanied by expressions of reassurance that everything is under control. (Therefore there is no need to start. )† â€Å"At some point, he crosses over an imaginary starting time and suddenly realizes, â€Å"Oh no! – I am not in control! There isn’t enough time! (Characteristics) The University states, later in their paper, the benefits of overcoming procrastination â€Å"Peace of mind, a feeling of strength and purpose, and healthy feeling of being in charge of your life. While procrastination makes you feel week, useless , and helpless, taking charge of your life will make you feel strong, competent, and capable. You will experience increased personal freedom! † (Benefits of overcoming procrastination) A responsible person will not wait until the day the paper is due to write it. The final day should be set up for proof eading and any last minute tweaks. As any responsible person will tell you, following a schedule and turning your work in on time and producing higher grades will bring you an overabundance of self-pride other wise know as intrinsic motivation, and self-efficacy. Spitzer found that (2000) â€Å"Academic self-efficacy is one’s confidence to succeed at the academic tasks rather than one’s actual ability. Students with high self-efficacy show greater cognitive effort, intrinsic motivation, persistence, and self regulation in their academic performance. The pride you feel knowing that you did the best job you could in the time you were allotted. This very same drive to internal satisfaction that will continue not just throughout your college years but will stay with you in all that you do. Intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy are not the only rewards you will gain. By taking your time and producing outstanding work you will see a substantial increase in your Grade Point Average which is also your defining mark of greatness in college and beyond. â€Å"All college students share at least two goals during their college career.First, they must perform academically, usually measured by GPA (grade point average). Second, they must progress in career development. † (Spitzer, 2000) Your GPA will stay with you throughout your college career and is important to keep track of and strive for higher marks. It is after you graduate that your higher achievements will continue to count. Many employers will take you GPA into consideration when looking for new employees. The job you are applying for may come down to you and one other person and somethi ng like a GPA could loose you that career.It will help distinguish you from others applying for positions that you desire. Your high Grade Point Average will set you apart from mediocrity. A final important asset to consider is emotional intelligence. According to a study conducted by Sparkman, Maulding, and Roberts (2012) â€Å"Emotional Intelligence is the set of skills that a Pearson needs to function effectively in the world and what might be referred to as â€Å"common sense† (p. 644). Their study with EI, although very new and controversial, points to ow well an individual will â€Å"handle frustration, control emotions, and get along with other people† (p. 644). There is a wildly popular television show that is currently broadcasting which shows a group of twenty to thirty something year old nerds trying to function in the typical day to day environment. They are depicted in what we would call normal day to day functions and interactions and shown how even thou gh they are the Einstein’s of our time they fail miserable on a social level. One of the nerds in particular lacks the emotional intelligence to even function with his own fellow intellectuals.Studying this comedic group flounder their way through life is a perfect, all be it extreme, example of Sparkman, Maulding, and Roberts points on how important common sense is a must to function in today’s society. They even go so far as to suggest that â€Å"Universities wishing to increase student retention and graduation should use these scores to develop curriculum and extracurricular activities to encourage student growth in emotional intelligence which will specifically help students and institutions alike reach their educational goals† (p. 50). To be a successful student there are many tools for you to use, intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy, GPA, and even emotional intelligence, just to name a few. Each student will have to find what tool it will take to enhance t heir achievements. There are those they may disagree, they may say that being responsible has no correlation to a successful college education. They may even say that your Grade Point Average has no impact on landing a stable career.Zupek (2008) â€Å"While grades and GPA play a small role in the job-search process, the good news is that chances are, your GPA is not going to make or break you when it comes to getting a job† (what matters the most? ). With this economy and in these times why run that risk? Why would you not want to give your all? With a higher Grade Point Averages and a greater sense of self-pride there is no end to what you can accomplish. References California Polytechnic State University, Cal Poly Academic Skills Center. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://sas. calpoly. edu/asc/ssl/procrastination. html Sparkman, L.A. , Maulding, W. S. , & Roberts, J. G. (2012). Non-cognitive predictors of student success in college. College Student Journal, 46(3), 642-652. Ret rieved from University of Phoenix Online Library Spitzer, T. M. (2000). Predictors of college success: a comparison of traditional and nontraditional age students. NASPA Journal (National Association Of Student Personnel Administrators, Inc. ), 38(1), 82-99. Zupek, R. (2008) Does your gpa matter to employers? Retrieved from http://msn. careerbuilder. com/Article/MSN-1577-College-Internships-First-Jobs-Does-Your-GPA-Matter-to-Employers/

Ancient Chinese Contributions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Ancient Chinese Contributions - Essay Example China can rightfully lay claim to numerous scientific discoveries and technological inventions which greatly enriched human civilization as these paved the way for global progress. This brief paper is a discussion and exposition of such ancient Chinese contributions to civilization. Chinese civilization had existed uninterrupted for several millennia and due to this fact, it was able to develop to such an extent that the ancient Chinese acquired or accumulated enough knowledge about the natural world and perceptive enough to make the right connections to make scientific discoveries based on their theories and hypothesis; the other useful connection was to make practical use of these discoveries through technological inventions and applications so as to make life easier for everybody. Theoretical knowledge was applied to everyday use and for this, world civilization has a lot to be thankful for because the discoveries and inventions of the ancient Chinese served as foundation for further scientific and technological progress to take place. Among the more prominent Chinese contributions are the compass, gunpowder, printing, paper, coal mining, pottery and porcelain, use of petroleum, sericulture, star atlas, and meridian. Based on the partial list mentioned above, the four most important contributions are the compass, gunpowder, paper, and printing. These four inventions contributed a lot to the progress and advance of world civilization as the use of these four discoveries spread worldwide. The four inventions can be considered as the most ingenious and innovative considering the great amount of knowledge, insight, and thinking that went into these four inventions and discoveries. Compass - its discovery was crucial to ship navigation and the eventual discovery of vast new lands and territories beyond the great oceans of the world. Although the compass was

Manufacturing and Urbanization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Manufacturing and Urbanization - Essay Example Because of the rise of industrialism in the nineteenth century, United States became an industrialized society. This change was sped up by transportation revolution as well as immigration. Urbanization, along with the need for a market economy, also contributed America’s industrialization. Industrialization changed the lives of everyone. The farmers had become workers in factories and mills. Agriculture became mechanized, and with technology, the food production increased. Coupled with fast production and mechanization, the farmers worked faster. Since the transportation network was also quite effective, goods were also transported throughout America, boosting commerce and industry throughout the regions. Urbanization also went hand in hand with industrialization as with the expansion of farming. The mechanization of the textile industry was not until mid-nineteenth century when the likes of Lowell Mills (in Massachusetts) sprouted. In fact, Lowell Mills was the most profitabl e mill in Massachusetts. In 1814, the Boston Manufacturing Company was established and it built a mill near the Charles River. It became the first integrated mill in the United States: it was the first mill to have had carding, spinning and weaving. For several years, the town of Lowell in Massachusetts became the default place for putting up mills in America as ten textile corporations opened more than thirty mills in Lowell. The city became world famous as the â€Å"center of efficient industry†. These mills had eight thousand workers, women between ages 16 to 35 as their workers and they were promised high wages by men who told them that these jobs were available to all social classes, since being a mill girl is considered being degrading. The Lowell Mills had a large-scale mechanization with the goal of improving the stature the women in the workforce. The mills usually hired employees for a year and they were renewed every year (the average employee lasts for four years) . The new ones had a fixed wage while the older employees were paid by the piece. The workers usually worked for fourteen hours each day and their work averages for seventy three hours each week. The workers were overseen by two male managers. The rooms are hot with eighty workers to a room, and the windows are closed to maintain thread count and thread work. The workers were also housed in boarding houses that were provided by the company, with six workers in a bedroom. Because of the economic depression of the 1830s, the board of directors of the mills proposed a reduction in the women’s wages and the employees had strikes. The women lost and the employees left town, and this was seen as a â€Å"betrayal of femininity†. In 1845, the Lowell women started the Lowell Female Labor Reform Association. It demanded a ten hour work for the women of Lowell Mills. The movement became unsuccessful then but in 1847, their work hours were reduced by 30 minutes. In New Hampshire, however, the State Board passed a law for a ten hour workday. This development in the industrialization of America brought forth inequality in the working class, particularly in the lives of female white workers as exemplified by the working women of Lowell Mills. The inequality was not only sexist as it only affected women. Then inequality stretched to the point where the capitalists have used the term â€Å"more wages† as they hired women, on the premise of them providing better lives, with these women not knowing that they will be in for more

The Life of Langston Hughes and his use of Religion, Rite of Passage, Research Paper

The Life of Langston Hughes and his use of Religion, Rite of Passage, and Family in his short stories - Research Paper Example Because of racism, he provided a remarkable authority on the black all through the US in the era referred to as the Harlem Renaissance. He was among the most inexhaustible and most recognized black poets of the renaissance. He was among the few that broke the barriers that several artists had achieved before. His articulation not only endorsed African American civilization, but also endeavoured to bring notice the predicament of African American anguishing from injustice and oppression (Baraceros, 118). In his book essay, salvation Hughes retells an experience concerning religion. He narrates that, he was salvaged from sin, when he was turning thirteen, but was not truly saved. This experience affected how he dealt with situations in religion in the future. The start of the story has a tone that excites the reader and makes them inquisitive and hopeful. However, eventually the tone disappoints the readers making them culpable and non-believers. A restoration that gains thrust for day s is a climatic flat line for Langston leaving him an agnostic. His aunt tells a curious Langston that, grand things will occur at revitalization, at the cathedral of his Auntie Reed. He is told that he will experience an incredible feeling within and will be delivered. Had this before from others and does not deem it right to question his aunt. He is hopeful that, at the revival, Jesus will call children. The children are called up, and he takes a pew on the bench waiting for Jesus to reveal himself. He waits for a long time, but Jesus never appears. There are only two children left on the bench and the other child decides he will meet Jesus to end things but a hopeful Langston waits (Baraceros, 234). Langston is disillusioned that Jesus did not come to assist him when all eyes were focused on him. This made to lie to his aunt that he had seen when he cried that night out of disappointment. He has heard several people older people discuss what happens when one goes to Jesus. This m ade to be hopeful, curios and excited, but at the end, the complete opposite is the outcome. These two extremes lead to Langston to be a non-believer. Another Hughes’ significant story is â€Å"Thank you Ma’m.† This story is about an elderly woman walking alone in the dark when suddenly a boy attempts to grab her purse. Nonetheless, during the effort, he loses his steadiness and slides on the pavement and the annoyed woman picks him up and teaches him a thorough lesson. She takes the boy to her home so that he could wash his face and have a pleasant e meal, before she hands him some money to buy blue suede shoes he has always wished for a long time. This story appears to be written around the 1930s when racism was a prodigious topic in the southern states, during those times numerous African Americans had problems looking for a job. During this period, many blacks had to fight for their freedom. From Rogers' perception, children went through a rough period as we ll during that era. He is dirty and frail and a street rogue. He depicts the life of many children of that time. Mrs Washington Jones, the elderly woman sympathises with Roger even though he tries to steal from her. She depicts a different side of the poor neighbourhood; a sturdy woman who depicts kindness to a stranger one would not expect her to be bothered. Many children in poor neighbourhoods had little to go home to,

Architectural History and Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Architectural History and Theory - Essay Example This was brought about by a renaissance of interest in Japanese building, due in part to two publications and an imported building, the appearance of which in itself was an inspiring recommendation. Both publications date from 1936. The first is a 36 page booklet with cardboard covers by Bruno Taut, a Prussian, who, throughout the 1920's, had been an engineer and designer of housing communities in Germany. In 1933 Taut went to Japan as an authority on architecture as well as industrial design. He spent some of his time examining and re-evaluating Japanese architecture, and on October 30, 1935, he revealed his conclusions in a Lecture Series on Japanese Culture sponsored by the Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai (Society for International Cultural Relations) at the Peers' Club in Tokyo. The talk with 25 illustrations was published the next year in essay form, under the title Fundamentals of Japanese Architecture (Taut 1936). Historical Development Bruno Taut took the position that the West misle d the Japanese into thinking the peak of their architectural achievement was the ornate sanctuaries at Nikko (Stennott 2004). In truth, he said, Nikko shows an undigested conglomeration of borrowed elements that are not Japanese by any means. Sure, simple inhabitant taste is to be found in the early Shinto shrines at Ise, in medieval Japanese farmhouses, and particularly in the Katsura Villa near Kyoto, the last of which was planned and built during the second quarter of the seventeenth century. Not like the contemporary group at Nikko, weighted down by the "ostentatious architectural conceptions of the war-lords," the Katsura articulates a freedom of design "in which harmony arises from absence of coercion," therefore becoming "a totally isolated miracle in the cultured world." The author has represented his favorite villas by connotation "international" and "eternal." The Katsura Villa was a return to inborn Japanese artistry, after centuries of being deceived by foreign imitation s, brought about by the stabilizing force of Zen principles that eschewed irrelevant ornamentation and abnormalities of proportion. Buildings referred to in the text are signified among the plates at the back of Taut's book, and these comprise a height of the Hiunkaku, of which the staircase leading up from the lake has been compared to the suspended flight of steps at Falling Water. The second publication of 1936 was Jiro Harada The Lesson of Japanese Architecture, issued at London and Boston. C. Geoffrey Holme, writing in the Introduction, states that the "Lesson" is proposed for the Western world, and may be "summarized in brief as standardization, diversity in unity, conventionality to a mode of living, connexion with nature, simplicity and, certainly, usefulness to purpose" (Harada 1936). Harada's text comprises three chapters, entitled, "A Short Historical Survey," "General Observations," and "The Japanese House Toda." They include seven figures and 158

Materials in Construction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Materials in Construction - Essay Example This has two components namely: direct and indirect. Direct energy is the energy used to transport building products to the site, and then to construct the building while indirect energy is the energy used to acquire, process, and manufacture the building materials, including any transportation related to these activities. Different materials have different embodied energy. It is measured as a quantity of non-renewable energy per unit of building material, component or system. It may be expressed as megaJoules (MJ) or gigaJoules (GJ) per unit of weight (kg or tonne) or area (square metre). Some embodied energy of common materials are presented in the table below. Embodied energy in construction has important connection to environment since CO2 emissions are highly correlated with the energy consumption. Literatures show that on average, 0.098 tonnes of CO2 are produced per gigajoule of embodied energy. Therefore, the higher the embodied energy of a specific construction material the higher its environmental effects. The external envelope is the primary and critical component of a building that serves as insulator and a protective physical covering for the occupants. The envelope consists of the roof, walls, windows, and the doors. Design of a building’s external covering is based upon several performance objectives such as: structural integrity, moisture control, temperature control, and control of air pressure boundaries. Common measures of the effectiveness of a building envelope include physical protection from weather and climate (comfort), indoor air quality (hygiene and public health), durability and energy efficiency. In order to achieve these objectives, all building enclosure systems must include a solid structure, a drainage plane, an air barrier, a thermal barrier, and may include a vapor barrier. Moisture control is essential in cold climates. Since the building enclosure is

Macroeconomics in Unemployment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Macroeconomics in Unemployment - Essay Example For instance, in 2011, the United States plunged into its worst unemployment rate in decades, 7% (Domino, 2011). Unemployment is caused by a combination of numerous factors. Despite desperate attempts to curb it, it has persisted. According to Symes, poor government policy on unemployment is the principal cause of unemployment (1995). She also sites high unemployment compensation as a reason for unemployment (p. 173). When unemployed people receive compensation equivalent to what others on employment in other countries earn, they tend to be reluctant in job searching. After all, why search for a job when the government can foot your bills? Minimum wage legislation is also another cause of unemployment. By enacting the minimum wage legislation, the government made it alsmost impossible for small and medium size businesses to hire qualified persons. It is irrational to hire employees when your business cannot pay their salaries. High salaries is against business operation principle of maintaining the lowest possible level of expenditure to maximize profits. Surprisingly, discrimination is still among the factors causing unemployment. Some employers discriminate job seekers based on their race, religion, age, residence, physique, gender, or even political ideologies. Landy claims that, â€Å"Hundreds of thousands not yet old, not yet voluntarily retired find themselves jobless because of arbitrary age discrimination†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (2005). This is a solid evidence of age discrimination in employment. Whatever the reason, job discrimination is not justified at all. Besides the major causes of unemployment, many local factors cause unemployment. Such factors may include the location of the unemployed person, transport flexibility, cost, and availability, and commitment to job searching. Symes (1995) laid a scathing attack on government policies on unemployment terming the policies as the principal cause of unemployment (p. 9). This statement may be debated. However, government policies certainly play a role in influencing unemployment. Some of the government policies that influence unemployment are discussed below. Employment policy Even though commitments may vary, all governments attempt to stimulate employment. The US government for instance has tried to encourage business efficiency by bailing out firms adversely affected by the 2008/2009 economic depression to avoid massive layoffs. The UK government, on the other, hand introduced â€Å"The New Deal,† a programme that offers training and development to the unemployed to enhance their chances of securing jobs. Taxation policy The government may also use taxation, as a primary fiscal policy, to control unemployment. By cutting taxes, the government stimulates economic growth while at the same time reducing the rate of unemployment. This works in two ways. First, tax cuts increases consumers’ income, which means their purchasing power is increased. From the second perspective, b usinesses earn more money, as consumers buy more. The increased income leads to expansion, which consequently leads to hiring. Government Spending Government’s expenditure is not arbitrary, but well calculated. The government’s spending can influence unemployment significantly. For instance, by funding new programmes such as road construction, the government creates direct jobs to the workers involved in the construction. Additionally, there are indirect jobs in the private